Multipurpose container

ABSTRACT

The Multipurpose container invention is a simple, safe, and convenient holder primarily to provide a consistent location to store a wireless cell phone earpiece up on the vertical edge of the vehicle dash when it is not on the driver&#39;s ear. The primary benefit is to reduce driver distraction that results when the driver has to search to locate the earpiece when needed and secondly to provide a safe place to avoid damage to the earpiece while stored due to comingling with other objects or under other objects on the console, or in the console, or in a purse. Other featured benefits provided by the invention are a pen holder, a storage cup for gum or lip moisturizer or similar items, a trash bag hanger pedestal extension to clean up the trash items on the console, and a round promotional advertising surface for the seller or the user to customize.

CROSSREFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

Not Applicable

STATEMENT REGARDING FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH OR DEVELOPMENT

Not Applicable

REFERENCE TO SEQUENCE LISTING, A TABLE, OR A COMPUTER PROGRAM LISTING COMPACT DISC APPENDIX

Not Applicable

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Hand held cell phone use while driving has shown to increase driver distraction so the movement to hands free wireless earpieces is occurring as drivers realize the benefits of keeping both hands on the wheel to reduce driver distraction during cell phone use. While using a wireless earpiece reduces driver distraction compared to hand held cell phone use there is another potential distraction in the vehicle if a call comes in and the driver is not wearing the earpiece and therefore has limited time to locate the earpiece and quickly install it on the ear to take the call. This invention provides a consistent predictable location for the earpiece in an uncluttered area for quick access when a call comes in and the driver is not wearing the earpiece at that time. Driver distraction and stress levels rise if the earpiece is not accessible immediately because there is a short time period before the call will go to voice mail or be lost. This short time interval is critical because difficulty in getting to the earpiece can lead to the eyes going off the road ahead and thus lead to a car crash. Here are the Virginia Tech Transportation Institute findings of the director, Thomas A. Dingus, regarding vehicle accident studies.

It is important to reduce the time the driver must look away from the road ahead. Mr. Dingus included these excerpts in his study. He notes among other distractions that “reaching for a moving or non-moving object and taking a long glance at some external object” contributes to “distractions that lead to accidents.”

Mr. Dingus also reports that “in 93% of all rear-end crashes, the driver looked away from the roadway at least once within 5 seconds of the onset of the conflict. “He concludes,” redirecting the driver's eyes on the forward roadway may be one way to decrease crash rates.”

The United States Department of Transportation also cites the Virginia Tech Transportation Institute Study for the National Highway Safety Administration with the statement that “80% of all car wrecks are directly related to distracted driving.” The field of endeavor for this invention is heretofore to provide a simple and convenient container on the vehicle vertical dash surface to attach or contain any brand of a wireless cell phone earpiece commonly referred to as a Bluetooth® plus other functions that reduce other driver distractions or provide additional driver convenience.

The primary number 1 use for a container for a wireless earpiece is to designate a specific uncluttered consistent location to facilitate charging the unit and keeping it on standby ready in the same specific location for access to a potential incoming or outgoing call. Drivers should in theory always have the earpiece on full time while driving but In the real world drivers often remove the earpiece from their ear during low call times or to charge it or to get out of the car momentarily to pump gas or go into a store or a restaurant and may not immediately put it back on when returning to the vehicle to continue driving but still need to quickly wear it to receive a sudden incoming call. It is important for the driver to know in advance when the phone rings where the earpiece is quickly to access it with minimum distraction while maximizing time with eyes on the road ahead. The number 2 feature is that the container also provides a convenient place to store a pen on the side of the container for access during the time the vehicle is stationary or at any time by the passenger. Drivers often need a pen to write a note or a phone number down. To do this safely often requires the driver to memorize the info and then pull off the roadway in a safe place and write the info down. If a pen is hard to find the memory is usually gone from the frustration of the search and so is the info gone from the memory. The number 3 feature is that the container provides a location to store small items that drivers like while driving such as lip moisturizer, toothpicks, breath mints, chewing gum, and similar small items or the earpiece can be in the container versus on the side of the of the container cutout notch provided by the invention. The number 4 feature is an extension pedestal on the container to support a hanging trash bag or a fast food bag full of food wrappers and empty paper coffee cups, banana peels, apple cores, empty beverage cans, gum wrappers, candy bar wrappers, receipts, and similar discard items that commonly pile up in vehicles. These discard items if left lying on the console or in holes in the dash can get comingled with items that the driver needs and cause potentially major driver distraction in locating something buried beneath it all. Most fast food paper bags can be punctured on the side of the bag by an ink pen or a pocket knife both of which can be stored in or on the container, and then the bag punctured area can be inserted over the bag holder disc quite successfully to hold the bag and additional items of trash can be added until the next stop to discard it all in a proper designated trash receptacle. Plastic trash bags of similar size or smaller can be used as well. The number 5 feature is a customizable advertising pod surface for the seller or user to customize with an ink stamp, a logo, or a picture or a pin as they choose.

Prior art for feature number 1 is that wireless cell phone earpieces for most all if not all vehicles do not have a specific designed earpiece storage location in at least a slightly night lighted area within the vehicle to consistently place the earpiece when the driver chooses to take it off during quiet call times or to charge it. The invention is above the console on the vertical dash so it gets up closer to the forward road sight lines and at night receives enough light from the radio and climate control area to be visible enough to see the earpiece and container contents. Prior art for placement of the earpiece has been to lay it on the dash, on the console, in the console, in the driver's lap, in a beverage cup holder, in a dark hole in the dash, in a purse, or hang it on a chain from the rearview mirror. This can lead to driver distraction from the road ahead when other items share the space where the driver put the earpiece and more especially in the darkness at night when a call comes because the driver must search for the earpiece which is often under or comingled with other items in a dark place or it is comingled with clutter in or near the console. The number 2 pen holder feature prior art is to purchase an aftermarket pen holder or place the pen or pencil in or on the console which can potentially get comingled with other clutter. The number 3 feature for items storage has prior art of using vehicle manufacturer's open trays or closing lid consoles or open holes or beverage cup holders or vehicle owners would purchase an aftermarket storage container of a different sort than this invention. The number 4 bag holder feature prior art is that most vehicles do not provide a specific pedestal or device to hang a trash bag to get clutter out of or off of the console. Prior art for the trash bag holder is that the bags were hung on the radio knob or edge of the ashtray or another control lever or anything that sticks out of the dash or else the trash is just piled on the console comingled with other objects. Most new cars have gone away from any knob at all or lever that can hold a trash bag so trash piles up or is placed on the floor or stuffed under a seat.

In summary prior art for the wireless earpiece, pen, gum, lip moisturizer, etc are that they are generally placed in the console beverage cup holder often comingled with cans and bottles and fast food items or trash, or on the console lid, or on top of the dash where they can slide around, in a general item storage hole in the dash or in the console among other items or in a purse. When a driver needs to search for a wireless cell phone earpiece in the prior art status it leads to driver distraction from the road ahead especially at night when the vehicle interior is dark. Having the wireless earpiece stored on the dash in a consistent specific location that is a known consistent predictable location aids the driver to access the earpiece much more quickly with less chance for driver distraction to the road ahead. Since a wireless earpiece is an expensive electronic device it is important to protect it from damage from beverage fluids and crushing that can occur with storage from other than what the invention offers. The container addresses the Virginia Tech Transportation Institute findings of the director, Thomas A. Dingus, regarding vehicle accident studies. It is important to reduce the time the driver must look away from the road ahead. By using this invention the wireless earpiece is consistently and conveniently stored up near the sight line to the road ahead on the vertical dash in a predictable location above the console which is a location closer to the sight line to the road ahead especially important when driving at night. The invention's trash bag holder also contributes to reduce other miscellaneous console clutter thus reducing driver distraction in locating other items.

BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The primary object of the invention is to reduce driver distraction by providing a dash mounted holder for vehicle operators to conveniently access a wireless cell phone hands free earpiece, to provide safe storage for the earpiece from beverage fluid damage or crushing damage with additional featured benefits of storing a pen and other items and providing a trash bag holder pedestal extension with a customizable pod surface to place a promotional ink stamp, decal logo, picture, pins, or a picture by the seller or by the user. The mounting location is up on the dash surface which is higher than the console and thus closer to the sight line to the road ahead which reduces driver distraction and leads to improved driver response to the situation on the road ahead should a response be required.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWING

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the invention titled multipurpose container. It is used to store a wireless earpiece, pen, items, bag holder, and provides an advertising surface. It shall hereinafter be referred to as the invention. This view shows a cylindrical container with 5 vertical sides with a cutout notch in one of the sides to hang a wireless earpiece, and a round disc pod on another side which is part of the trash bag holder. The bottom of the container is closed while the top is open. The invention is all one piece with exception of the adhesive double sided mounting tape. The invention has no moving parts.

FIG. 2 shows a left side view wherein left is the left side according to the view of a driver of a left side steering wheel mounted vehicle.

FIG. 3 shows a front view of the invention

FIG. 4 shows a top view of the invention

FIG. 5 shows the same view as FIG. 3 except it is inverted

FIG. 6 is a perspective view of the invention in typical use holding a wireless earpiece, a pen, and a trash bag.

DRAWINGS Reference Numerals

-   1 Container to store wireless earpiece or small items -   2 45 degree offset to the right dash mounting surface -   3 Zero degree offset straight dash mounting surface -   4 Cutout notch to hang most wireless earpiece devices -   5 Customizable disc pod surface that retains the trash bag on     pedestal numeral 6 -   6 Trash bag pedestal -   7 Trash bag -   8 Wireless earpiece -   9 Pen

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

The invention will be ABS black plastic injection molded as one piece. The flat surface of the round disc pod will be the location for customizing with a decal, an ink stamp, any pictures, any decals, any pins, or any device to advertise said logos, said pictures, said decals or said pins. The top edges of the container are rounded and of a small thickness dimension to function well with the pen clip and the similar dimension for the cutout notch to accommodate easy access for the wireless earpiece.

FIG. 1 shows a perspective view of the invention which is a five sided cylinder, 1, with a closed bottom. The user will determine a convenient mounting location on the generally vertical surface of the dash to the right of the operator. Double sided adhesive tape will be provided to mount the invention using either side, 2, which provides a 45 degree offset right to get the trash bag suspended off to the right side of the console if a console is present or zero degree offset option side, 3, to let the trash bag hang straight down for vehicles with no console below. The user chooses which mounting side to use and which surface on the dash is best suited for mounting with double side adhesive tape. Cutout notch, 4, is designed to accommodate hanging most wireless earpiece devices by sliding the rear or interior side of the ear bud down the tapered cutout notch until it engages at a secure position in the notch. An earpiece with an ear loop can use the notch to hang the earpiece device in the cutout notch by the ear loop placement in the notch or the entire earpiece unit can be stored in the container if desired. Older earpiece devices that can't hang on the notch can also be stored in the container. At the front is the round disc, 5, which has two purposes. One is to provide a retention point to retain a trash bag and secondly to provide an advertising space on the front side for the user or manufacturer to customize by adding any advertising logos, an ink stamp, any pictures, any decals, any pins, or any device to advertise said logos, said pictures, said decals or said pins. It can be a shape other than round as long as it retains the trash bag.

FIG. 2 is a left side view of the invention, 1, the 45 degree offset to the right dash mounting surface, 2, and zero degree mounting surface (end view), 3, the cutout notch, 4, a customizable disc pod, 5, and a bag holder pedestal, 6, that supports the weight of the trash bag.

FIG. 3 is a front view of the invention, 1, as viewed from the vehicle occupant seating area with the occupant facing in the forward direction of travel when the invention is mounted on the zero degree straight mounting surface, 3. Also shown is the 45 degree offset right mounting surface, 2, the cutout notch, 4, and a customizable disc pod, 5, that retains the trash bag.

FIG. 4 is a top view of the invention, 1, as viewed from the vehicle occupant seating area when the invention is mounted on the dash and the 45 degree offset to the right dash mounting surface, 2, and zero degree mounting surface, 3, the cutout notch, 4, and a customizable disc pod, 5, that retains the trash bag and the trash bag pedestal that supports the trash bag, 6.

FIG. 5 is an inverted view of FIG. 3 showing the same reference numbers as FIG. 3.

FIG. 6 is a perspective view of the invention showing the invention performing three of it's functions including holding a trash bag a trash bag, 7, mounted on the pedestal, (hidden from this view), 6, and retained by disc pod, 5, and a wireless earpiece, 8, mounted in the cutout notch and a pen, 9, clipped on the right side. 

1. A multipurpose container with an adhesive mounting base to be applied to the vertical dash surface of a vehicle comprising: a. a receptacle to store or support a wireless earpiece, b. a bag holder comprising a contiguous horizontal member mounted to said multipurpose container with a vertically mounted member at the outer end of the said horizontal member to retain a bag on said bag holder.
 2. The multipurpose container of claim 1 has a customizable advertising surface to apply any advertising logos, an ink stamp, pictures, decals, or pins. 